PUHI — In his more than 30-year professional career, Evan Dobelle has worn many hats — ranging from civil rights activist to mayor of Pittsfield, Mass., to U.S. Chief of Protocol at the White House. And now, as president-designate of
PUHI — In his more than 30-year professional career, Evan Dobelle has worn many hats — ranging from civil rights activist to mayor of Pittsfield, Mass., to U.S. Chief of Protocol at the White House.
And now, as president-designate of the University of Hawai-i system, Dobelle told a small crowd at Kaua-i Community College on Friday that he’ll likely need to draw on all those experiences when he begins his new job on July 2.
Having been named to the slot March 12, Dobelle said he has spent most of this week not only meeting with officials such as Gov. Ben Cayetano and leaders of the University of Hawai-i Professional Assembly, but touring nine UH campuses within three days.
With trying times ahead for the UH system — with recently announced tuition hikes and a looming faculty strike — the president said his job will be difficult in the coming months, but will ultimately lead to the schools exceeding their high reputation.
“These are challenging times for the system,” he said. “I don’t have all the answers , but I have the will to change things for the better.”
As a former president of Middlesex Community College in Mass., as well as the City College of San Francisco and Trinity College in Hartford, Conn., Dobelle said he understands the needs of a community college within a university system, and wants to preserve the unique offerings of such a school.
“I know the tremendous energy of a community college, and the challenges you meet every day,” he told the gathering of administrators, faculty and students.
Dobelle said the ongoing salary struggle between the state and the UHPA — which is scheduled to hold a strike vote early next week — holds the UH system in an uncomfortable situation right now, and that he is interested in having it resolved as soon as possible.
As a former student and instructor, Dobelle said salary talks are not always what they seem.
“This isn’t about money,” he said. “It’s about dignity, and the treasured spot teachers deserve in our community.”
Chosen to become the 12th UH president after Ken Mortimer steps down July 1, said he was apprehensive about the generous salary he would be receiving for the new job while teachers battled it out for raises, but promised he would ensure he was worth it.
“When I come here, I will make sure I earn more than I make,” he said.
Staff writer Matt Smylie can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 226) and mailto:msmylie@pulitzer.net
